A Trip to the Past
by Darkness-Chill
Summary: From a time where war rages, two teenagers are about to find themselves pulled into an unfamiliar, but much more peaceful world. Now, Mike and Laci must find a way home before things get bad. But, of course, nothing can ever be easy.
1. Chapter 1

Hello, all. Cami here, with another story. Err, this one's a rewrite of one I abandoned in… 2005, maybe? If any of my old readers are back, welcome! I hope this one is better than the last. God, I hope it's better than the piece of crap the old one was.

Note the rating! This story'll be light in the beginning, but it'll definitely get darker as time goes on. And the next two'll be worse. Yes, this is a trilogy. This is the first one, the middle one can stand alone, and the third one can't. The third one will be the darkest of all of them.

Without further ado…

Full Summary: From a time where war rages, two teenagers are about to find themselves pulled into a much more peaceful world with no way to go home. Now, without exposing themselves as accidental time travelers to the entirety of Amity Park, Mike and Laci must find a way home before things get bad. But, of course, nothing can ever be easy.

Pairings: Sam/Danny, I guess. Nothing major, this isn't really a romance story. Hints of OC/OC (Mike and Laci), but like I said, not a romance.

Warnings: Note rating, OC story. Though I'd like to think that my OCs are well written, I can't really guarantee you'll like them, especially if you're not an OC fan. If you're going to flame me purely because I put OCs in my story, turn back now.

Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom or any of its characters. I own Mike and Laci, as well as any other OCs that may be mentioned in the story, as well as the ideas for the time they come from.

Enjoy!

And yes, I did keep the lame title. I couldn't think of a different one. I am aware that the title is lame.

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Chapter One: Landings

"No way. Never. Laci, I am not listening to this." Michael (Mike) Davidson said, turning away from his best friend. Usually Mike would consider Laci's requests. This time, he wouldn't even look at her. She had THAT look on her face.

Yes, the 16 year old had the look on her face that told Mike that even a single glance at her eyes would have him spiraling into a world of trouble. He never liked trouble, so whenever he saw the look coming, he refused to look at Laci.

But Laci had ways of making him look at her.

"Miiiike!" Laci cried, darting around her friend to try and see his face, "How dangerous could it possibly be? It's an abandoned base! No one's there anymore!" You see, readers, Laci had this idea in her mind that exploring the ruins of an abandoned military base would be a fun and enjoyable Saturday. Considering that Laci and Mike lived over 150 years in the future, give or take a few depending the year this is being read in, this could actually be an enjoyable Saturday activity. But, Mike didn't seem to think so.

"We'll get CAUGHT, Lace." Mike insisted, running a hand through his messy brown hair, "Unless we walked into those ruins with aristocrat Loyalty bands or some other kind of proof that we were with the Loyals and not the Rebels, the minute someone saw us, we'd be caught."

Laci now had an evil glint in her eyes.

"And I'm not killing a Loyalty 'crat to get a band, either." Mike said.

"Aww, but the 'crats go down so easily!" Laci pouted, "And it'd be a perfect way to get a reusable Loyalty band, which could come in handy in the future."

There was no answer, as Mike had pulled a handheld out of his pocket and was now reading something.

"What is it?" Laci skipped over and looked over her friend's shoulder.

"Message from Skye." Mike said, "He wants you to look at something that he found."

"Let's go then!" Laci shouted, eager for any kind of action she could find.

"Someone got to him midway through this message." Mike said, "It's incomplete. I think he sent the message hastily so I'd get at least part of it. Lace, be prepared, we might need to search Skye's corpse to find what he wanted you to look at."

Laci shuddered slightly, but nodded. Sometimes friends must fall to reach an ultimate goal. She understood that. But it didn't make it hurt any less.

XXXX

They reached the coordinates where Skye had sent the message about an hour later, only to see the man dead on the ground, like Mike had predicted. He wasn't the only one, either. Several other Rebel soldiers that Laci and Mike had only known in passing were dead on the ground too. Whatever got to them had hit them hard.

As Laci dashed around, checking corpses to find any survivors, though deep in her heart she knew there weren't any, Mike bent over the body of Skye and searched for what he had been messaged about. He found it just as Laci headed back over, her hands now covered in blood from the soldiers she'd been checking. She wiped them off on a tree, grimacing as some got into her short blond hair. She'd worry about that later.

"What is it?" Laci asked him, her thoughts about invading abandoned enemy bases gone as she looked at the silver disk in Mike's hands.

"A computer disk." Mike said, "I can only imagine what Skye and the others went through to get this. There're also directions to something."

"Should we follow the directions or investigate that disk first?" Laci asked her friend.

"The directions. We have no computer to investigate this disk on." he put it safely in his pocket and read the directions carefully. "Okay, let's go."

Laci nodded, and the friends set off.

XXXX

The year was 2162. The world was a constant war between its rulers and those loyal to them, called the Loyals, and usually aristocrats or higher class members of society, and then those opposed to the rulers and their twisted ways of ruling the world, the Rebels. Mike and Laci were two of these Rebels. They were ages 17 and 16 respectively, and normally would not have joined the Rebels for another two or three years, but the deaths of their parents in battle had proven to them that they needed to do something. Since then, Laci, the technology expert, had been helping out Skye and the other Rebels with her skills on computers and other techy devices, while Mike, an excellent strategist, worked with them on more battlefield related subjects.

The two had been friends before joining the Rebels, and they grew closer and closer as time went on.

And now the two were trekking through a half burned down forest, looking for something unnatural.

"Those directions suck." Laci said, pushing some hair behind her ear and moving some branches out of her way.

Mike followed her, "I think Skye was kind of pressed for time, y'know." He said. Neither of them had cried over Skye's passing. Neither of them knew him well enough.

"Yeah, I know, I know, I just need to complain about something right now." Laci said, sighing. "Hey, does that count as unnatural?" she pointed to what looked like a run-down building in the middle of the forest.

"Yeah, I would think so." Mike said, approaching the building. He ran his hand along the steel of the wall, looking for anything abnormal about it.

"Hey! Look, it's a computer!" Laci called, from a few feet away. She pulled some vines off of the computer's surface and booted it up, yawning at the slow speed. Mike hurried over to stand behind her as she did her work, keeping an eye out for anyone approaching. "Let's see… looks like the system was overridden by someone about twenty years ago, and no one's touched it since. The files are all over the place and the last access date was 20 years ago. Hmm… I wonder if there's a defense system… found it! Alright, the door should be opening." Sure enough, the wall Mike had just been investigating shuddered and a part of it slid down, opening like a door. He hurried over to it, peeking his head inside carefully.

"Laci, anything else on that computer?" he asked.

"Nope." Laci answered, "Just old system junk."

"Wipe the systems." Mike ordered, walking in.

"Aye aye, captain. Jeez." Laci muttered, imputing the commands for a system wipe and hurrying after her friend. Entering the building, she found herself in shock at the massive computer that lined the first room.

"Wow." She muttered, as that was all she was able to get out. Mike chuckled.

"Think you can hack into it?" he asked, tossing her the disk.

Laci caught it, "Gimme a few minutes and I'll tell you everything that's on this disk." She grinned, running up to the computer.

"Thanks, Lace." Mike said, "I'm going to look around a bit." He left the room as Laci began to type on the computer, inputting commands that she knew Mike wouldn't understand even if they were explained to him.

"Lets see what's on this thing." She said, inserting the disk into the computer. She began to type again. "What… what language is this?" she muttered, not understanding anything that was popping up. She tried changing the character strings and a million other things, but nothing was working. "Argh, I can't tell what's on it if I can't understand what language it's written in." She sighed. "Mike?" she called out loudly, hoping her friend could hear her. A few seconds later she heard footsteps and, assuming they were his, she turned to him. "Look, this thing's in some language I don't know, and… you're not Mike." She stated. "Eek! Why does a Dark-Being have to be here?" she shrieked, pulling a knife out of her pocket. The Dark-Being charged for her, but Laci slashed through it, the Dark-Being falling to the ground and vanishing.

Laci shuddered. "Eww." She muttered, putting the knife away, "I hope Mike didn't run into too many of these. Not that he can't handle a couple of Dark-Beings, but still." She turned back to the computer and continued typing.

XXXX

Mike traversed the hallways of the building, surprised slightly at the size. It seemed to be a bunker of sorts, and by the insignia on the walls, probably a Rebel bunker, which would mean that if Laci's assumptions were right, a Loyal had bypassed the system 20 years ago.

He had found a couple of still useable bedrooms that he and Laci would be taking advantage of, though his female companion would be cleaning them thoroughly first. Almost every other room he had come across, though, had been ransacked and was simply a mess. He turned around, deciding to head back to the computer room where Laci was to see if she'd found anything.

About five minutes of trying to find his way back through the confusing hallways, and Mike found himself entering the computer room.

"Laci!" he shouted, surprised at the image in front of him. Laci was staring, astonished, at a portal that had opened up in front of her, on the computer. "What's going on?" Mike asked his friend.

"I… I don't know." She answered, "I was just trying to decipher this thing, and then… THIS thing appeared, and…. I really don't know!" Mike gasped as he suddenly found himself being sucked towards the now-fully-opened portal.

Laci latched onto him, her fear showing on her face as the pair tumbled through the portal, crashing down to the ground in a world that seemed unnaturally warm.

Once he regained his senses, Mike looked around, only to see three figures running towards them, two boys and a girl.

"Are… you alright?" the black haired boy spoke up, offering a hand to Mike. He took it, helping the unusually silent Laci up after.

"We're fine." Mike answered.

"Yeah, we're fine." Laci assured them, smiling, though behind that smile she was scared out of her mind. The portal was gone, and with it, any hope they had of getting home. Of course, before figuring out how to get home, they figured they should probably figure out where they were first.

"So, can we ask why you came out of a portal?" the girl asked.

"We'd like to know that ourselves." Laci muttered, sighing, "Where are we?" she asked, "Time, place… planet?" she added, seeing completely unfamiliar sights.

"The year's 2008, Amity Park, New York." The first boy, the one who'd helped Mike up, said, "Umm… the planet's Earth."

"2008, you said?" Laci asked.

He nodded.

"Shit." Laci muttered, simply. "Mike, we're over 150 years in the past."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Aha! I finally rewrote it. I hope it's better than the first one, because that one really sucked. Updates'll probably be pretty slow on this, too. This was kind of hard to write, and I have yet to figure out an actual middle. I know the beginning, I know the end, but it's lacking a middle. I'll work on that tonight.

Anyway, I'll get the next chapter up as soon as I can, but I need to get to work on the next Secrets chapter.

Hope you liked!


	2. Chapter 2

"Wait, what do you mean, 150 years in the past? You're from the future?" the black haired boy asked, surprised, looking the two over with more interest than before.

"I… I guess so." Laci said, "I'm pretty confused myself. There was that encoded disk, and then that portal… that portal must've sent us here, but…"

Mike put a hand on her shoulder, stopping her rambling, "I apologize for the weirdness of this entire thing, but… could you maybe help us out?"

The three teens, who had pretty much gotten over their shock, nodded slowly. The female spoke up, "You can stay with me; there's plenty of room in my house." She began to think, "And my parents shouldn't mind, and if they do, I don't really care."

"Thanks." Mike smiled, "We really appreciate it. My name's Mike and this is Laci."

"I'm Sam." The girl said.

"Tucker." One of the boys introduced himself. The other boy, the black haired one, seemed to be distracted, but a simple shove in the back via Tucker pulled him back to reality pretty quickly.

"H-huh? Oh, right, I'm Danny." He said.

It was Mike and Laci's turn to be shocked. Laci turned to Mike, mouthing something, but Mike silenced her by speaking again. "Thanks again for your help."

"No problem." Sam said, still a little wary about the two teens from the future's surprise at hearing their names. "Anyway, I guess I'll take you back to my place, then. You should probably get into clothes a little more suited for this time period, too, if you don't want to stick out."

Laci smiled, "Thanks." She said. Her long sleeved dark green shirt was starting to make her sweat, and it didn't help that this time period seemed warmer than her own did. Glancing over at Mike, she noticed that he seemed uncomfortably warm as well, which meant that she probably wasn't just having a nervous breakdown. That's always good to know.

"Well, let's get going, then." Sam said. Laci noticed she seemed really on edge and made a mental note to talk to her and thank her profusely later. After all, if those three weren't helping them, she and Mike would be more confused than they already were, and would, excuse her pessimism, probably end up dying or being killed.

Of course, this time was quite a bit more peaceful than her time period.

Danny and Tucker were coming along to Sam's too, it seemed. They were chatting with Mike, leaving Laci and Sam the only two not talking. Laci sped up a bit so that she was walking next to Sam, and smiled at the girl. "I just wanted to thank you again."

Sam glanced over, "Oh. No problem." She said.

There was a moment of silence in which Laci cursed her inability to make conversation. Then she spoke up again. "What made you decide to take us in?" she asked.

"I deal with weird stuff a lot." Sam shrugged, "It was the least I could do. I mean, you sort of fell out of a portal, so I highly doubt you had anywhere else to go."

Laci laughed, "That's true." She said.

"If you don't mind me asking, why were you in a portal in the first place?" Sam asked.

Now that was quite a question. The truth was, Laci wasn't even sure. Well, she knew why they had landed in the past- the portal had opened and they were sucked through. But as to why the portal had opened? She had only been scanning the contents (the very unreadable contents) of the disk, and it suddenly just… appeared. She had no explanation for it. She noticed Mike was waiting to hear her answer, probably just as interested as Sam was, so she spoke up. "Well, I was trying to decipher a disk that Mike found on a computer in an old rebel base and it just opened suddenly. I have no idea why or how, and I don't have the disk with me any more to find out. It was still in the computer when the portal opened." Laci sighed, "Unfortunately that leaves us in an unfamiliar time period with no way of getting back."

Danny seemed deep in thought about something, and no one wanted to disturb him, but Tucker spoke up. "I've got a whole bunch of machines and stuff at my house. Maybe something there can help you. We can head there after you get changed."

Laci smiled, but was a bit wary. Technology from 150 years ago that could help her make a time travel machine? It was unlikely. Still, though, it was worth a shot, because unless they happened to meet someone else from their time, they were stuck.

Laci didn't like that possibility very much.

XXXX

Mike had yet to get used to short sleeves. They were at Tucker's house, and Laci was going through all of the machines that Tucker had pulled out for her. She wasn't saying anything, except to ask what certain things were used for, but Mike could see on her face that she had found nothing she could work with.

Time travel was already a complicated subject. Mike knew Laci didn't know enough about it to actually construct a time machine, and definitely not from parts of 21st century machines. Of course, Laci had always been a fast learner, so it was possible she could do something. It was just unlikely.

Of course, it was also unlikely that a portal would open because of a computer disk found in the pocket of a dead comrade, but Mike had learned early on that questioning the past did nothing. Go figure- they were now in the past that he'd learned not to question.

Mike watched as Laci pulled a small machine out of the pile, tinkering with it for a moment and then pulling a part off. A small electric shock hit her, but Laci didn't even wince. Having been around machines for so long, small shocks like that barely affected her anymore. Tucker was momentarily shocked, but seemed to come to the same conclusion very quickly as Laci spoke up, "Could I take this?" she asked, holding up the small thing that looked slightly like a battery.

Tucker nodded, "Sure. I haven't been able to figure out what that is anyway."

Laci nodded, then turned back to the pile, leaving Mike to wonder what she had found.

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Sorry for the delay and then the shortness of this chapter. I'm not quite sure where to go with this at the moment, but I think I just got an idea. This IS just a side project, though, so I haven't really been working hard. If it gets sort of popular I might start working on it more.

Let's see… umm… I don't know if it was obvious, but towards the beginning of this chapter I stopped working on it, and then picked it up again today. I didn't bother rewriting the beginning, so there's a jump in style in the middle that I don't know if anyone can notice except me. Points if you find where I stopped, I suppose.

Anything else? I don't think so. Tell me what you thought, and I'll update eventually.


	3. Chapter 3

Later that night, when they'd gotten back to Sam's, Laci and Mike met in the room Sam had designated as Laci's for the term of their stay in the past. Laci was laying across the bed, fiddling with the object she'd found at Tucker's, and Mike was leaning against the wall, watching her.

Finally, he spoke up. "So, what is that?"

Laci looked up at him, "It's a battery." She said, softly, "Developed in 2103, and first used to power the machine that changed Earth's orbit."

Mike's eyes widened, "So what is it doing here?"

Laci shrugged, "The machine did vanish when it was done."

"That's just a legend." Mike protested.

"So is time travel." Laci stated, pointedly.

Silence fell.

After a minute, Mike spoke up again, "So, what do we do with it?"

"I have no idea." Laci admitted, "I know nothing about time travel, because as far as I knew, it didn't exist."

"So… we wait it out until we get an idea, then?" Mike guessed.

"Guess so." Laci nodded, "I don't think there's anything else we CAN do."

XXXX

Danny and Sam were sitting in Sam's kitchen, silently trying to think through any ideas for getting the two newcomers from the future back home and clearing up the whole mess. Since Sam's parents were away on business (the very reason Sam was able to let Laci and Mike stay) Danny was more than welcome in the house- Sam's grandmother had no problem with the halfa. Danny suddenly stood up, knocking his chair over, "I've got it! I don't know why I didn't think of it earlier."

The crash from the chair hitting the ground, along with Danny's outburst made Sam look up, "What?" she asked.

"Clockwork!" Danny exclaimed, "He's like the master of time and space- he sent me into the past before, so why couldn't he send Laci and Mike back to the future?"

"That's true…" Sam frowned, "But how do we ask him without telling the two of them about your secret?"

"I'll go ask him myself." Danny said, "If he agrees, then they'll be sent to the future anyway, so it's not a big deal if they know."

Sam nodded, "Alright."

"Okay, I'll head out now, then." Danny smiled at Sam, "See you soon." He vanished.

Sam bit her lip, "Be careful…"

XXXX

"No."

Danny's eyes widened, "What? Why not?! They're from the future, and you can control TIME!"

"It's not that I can't do it, Daniel." Clockwork stated evenly as his body changed to that of an adult. "But they have things they must do here. If I were to send them back now, it would be catastrophic."

"They're that important." Danny frowned, not believing it.

Clockwork elected not to answer, and instead spoke simply, "I'm sorry I can't help, but they'll find their way back in time."

An annoyed Danny left Clockwork alone.

XXXX

"This power core is either really hidden, or not here." Laci frowned, as she used a pair of pliers that she'd borrowed from Sam to try and find the power core of the battery she'd picked up.

Mike walked over, "How can it not be there?" he asked, "Everything needs a power core."

Laci sighed, "I don't know, but it's not here. There's no power core or chemical core at all." She huffed, laying back on the bed.

"Then we can't use it even if we did have an idea?" Mike asked her, frowning.

"Unless we can find a power core for it, it's obsolete." Laci nodded.

"Well…" Mike trailed off, formulating a plan. Before he could continue, Laci shot up and slapped him across the face, leaving him stunned.

"No. You'd be dead by the end of the month." She snapped.

" But once we're home, someone can put it back!" Mike protested.

"Mike, I don't even know HOW to get us home even if I could use this thing!" Laci shouted.

Sam burst in, "I heard yelling, is everyone okay?!"

Laci continued to death glare at Mike.

Mike sighed, and looked away from her, "We're fine. I was just being an idiot. Sorry, Lace."

Laci took a deep breath of relief.

"I promise I won't take out my power core. Promise." Mike added.

"Power core?" Sam asked, confused, "Are you a robot?"

Mike blinked, "Uh, no. I'm human." He said.

"So what do you mean by 'power core'?" Sam asked, thoroughly and completely confused.

"This is before the mutation." Laci realized, frowning.

"Oh." Mike said, before proceeding to explain, "Humans in our time don't have immune systems. Our time is so riddled with disease that you can't even hope to live for a week without one. Here, we'd probably last a month."

"Oh…" Sam frowned, "So, this power core…"

"Replicates a human immune system." Laci picked up the explanation, "Humans somehow mutated due to superior medicine- I suppose the human body thought that the immune system was unneeded, or the medicine itself actually caused the mutation. Either way, babies started being born and dying weeks later, and when scientists discovered the cause, they came up with the idea to replicate the immune system. It's surgically implanted in us as babies."

Mike lifted his shirt slightly so Sam could see a long scar down his side, "Mine failed when I was ten. I almost died."

"He had to have it replaced, but the process almost killed him. Muscles and tissue and such had grown around the power core, so he could have lost the use of parts of his body, even if he did survive. Luckily he made it through, somehow." Laci sighed, "Since then, he hasn't grown TOO much around it, so his power core would be easier to get out than mine would. Idiot suggested he take his out and we use it to replace the missing power core on this battery."

Sam glanced at the boy, "Mike, that IS a really stupid idea."

Mike sighed.

"Anyway, there's no guarantee they'd be compatible, and even if they were, I still don't know how to build a time machine. Even so, I do have to wonder what happened to the power core." Laci frowned.

"Someone probably stole it. They haven't been invented yet- someone probably saw it and was amazed." Mike said.

"Mmm, true…" Laci kept frowning.

Sam spoke up, "You two look like you need to get out of the house. We should get you some clothes anyway- you can't live off borrowed clothes forever, and by the look of things, you might be stuck here for awhile."

Mike and Laci exchanged a glance, before Laci spoke up, "Sam, you're already doing so much for us-"

"Nonsense." Sam shook her head, "Come on- I'll call Danny and Tucker and have them meet us at the mall."

Laci pocketed the battery, "Thank you." She smiled.

Sam smiled back.

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Kinda short, yeah, but the power core business is important to the storyline. Next chapter, freaky future kids in a mall! Yay!


	4. Chapter 4

"There they are." Sam said, leading Mike and Laci into the food court. Danny and Tucker were at a table, eating cheese fries.

"Hey, Sam!" Danny waved her over. Sam, Mike, and Laci walked towards them, and Sam sat down.

"Hey." Sam greeted her friends.

Danny glanced at Mike and Laci, "Adjusting okay?"

Laci shifted uncomfortably and Mike just smiled.

"Well, we need to get them some clothes." Sam said.

'Umm… Is there a bathroom around?" laci asked.

"Oh! Yeah! Right down there." Sam pointed, "We'll wait for you here."

"Thank you." Laci ran off. Once around the corner she looked around, finally finding the store she'd seen on the way in. A large help wanted sign was in the window. She walked in.

The man standing behind the counter looked up, "Can I help you?"

"You have a help wanted sign." Laci said, "Is there any chance you would hire me?"

"Any experience with computers?" he asked, looking the girl over. It was a computer repair store, after all.

"None professionally." Laci answered, "But I've been fixing them my whole life."

"Nice try. Sorry, kid, I need someone who knows what they're doing." He said, turning back to the computer he was repairing. Laci didn't move, and he didn't notice.

The computer was giving him problems, as evidenced by the fact that he didn't seem to have a clue how to fix it. Finally Laci grumbled and walked over, taking the tools from him.

"Hey, kid! What are you doing?!" the guy asked, shocked.

Laci ignored him and started looking at the computer. "Here. The pins in this cable are bent." She handed it to him, "Get me a new one."

The man, surprised, grabbed one from the table. Laci took it, replaced the cable, and slipped the cover back on, hitting the power button. It turned right on. She turned to the man, "Do you need more proof?"

The man stood there, sheepish. "When can you start?"

XXXX

"Laci's been gone awhile." Sam muttered, "Maybe I should go look for her."

"Nope, I'm fine." Laci ran over, "Sorrry, I got a little lost."

"Okay, ready to get going?" Sam stood up, "I was thinking Danny and Tucker would take Mike and I'd take you."

Laci smiled, "Sure." She fingered the cash the man, Jimmy, had given her for fixing the computer, and split it in half without looking at it. As Danny, Sam, and Tucker made plans on where they were going to meet up later, Laci slipped half of it into Mike's hand, murmering, "Pay for your own clothes."

Mike didn't react, used to Laci and her sneaky ways. The group split up and headed off to different stores to get them new clothes.

XXXX

"Ooh…" Laci muttered, pulling a pink tank off the hanger. Sam shuddered. "What?" Laci asked.

"Pink." Sam said, "Ugh."

Laci rolled her eyes, "Yeah, yeah. Pink looks good on me."

Sam shrugged and followed Laci towards another rack where she picked up a dark blue tank top. She put the pink one back and grabbed the skinny jeans she'd picked up before, heading towards the changing room. Sam sat down on a bench outside and waited for her.

When Laci came out, Sam nodded, "You look great."

"Thanks." Laci said, "My old boots match too." She grinned, "Just lemme change back and then I'm done." She vanished into the changing room. Sam frowned.

"Only one outfit?" she asked.

"Trust me." Laci said.

When she got out, the two of them headed for the cashier. Laci handed the clothes over and before Sam could pay, Laci handed the woman some money. Sam stared, surprised, and Laci grabbed her bad.

"I helped someone and they paid me." Laci said, explaining, "I have a job now."

"I told you you didn't have to-"

"Too late." Laci winked, 'I'm sorry, Sam, but you've been so nice- I have to pay you back somehow."

"So, does Mike have a job all the sudden now too?" Sam asked, crossing her arms.

"Mike's a lazy bum." Laci said, ":He doesn't think like I do."

"Ah." Sam said, confused and frowning.

Laci smiled at her.

XXXX

"Mike, what are you doing?" Danny asked.

'Paying." Mike handed money to the cashier, who smiled at him and gave him the change for the clothes he'd bough, as well as the bag that held them.

"But I thought you didn't have any money." Danny said.

"Laci gave me some." Mike shrugged as they headed out of the store.

"And where did SHE get it?" Danny asked.

"Not sure." Mike said, "She doesn't tell me these things."

"Yeah, you're just my squadron leader. No explanations needed." Laci said as she and Sam walked towards them. Danny glanced at Sam, but Sam just shrugged, having given up trying to understand.

"It's getting late." Danny changed the subject, glancing at his watch.

"We have school tomorrow, too…" Sam frowned, "You two and are going to have to stay at the house or something."

Laci glanced at the store she worked in, "I've got work. I don't think my boss will mind Mike hanging around."

"Okay, we'll come to the mall after school, then." Sam said, "Do you two know how to get here?"

"We'll figure it out." Laci said, "Come on, let's get back."

XXXX

Late that night, Mike and Laci sat in Laci's room. Laci was curled up on the bed and Mike was sitting in a chair, neither speaking. Laci turned her PDA over in her hand, again and again. It wasn't working- they'd checked. The power core had been drained completely on the trip back in time. It would need to be charged to get the system running again.

Laci knew how to charge a power core, but she didn't have access to any of the machine parts needed to make a charger. She wasn't even sure some of the stuff she needed existed yet.

"So this is before the infection. Before the Paranormals." Mike muttered.

Laci just nodded.

"If we had E-Tech we'd already be out of here." Mike groaned.

Laci sighed, "Well, we don't. We either have to make due until he appears or figure out our own way back."

Mike nodded. Silence fell again.

Finally Laci spoke up, "Go to bed, Mike. We'll talk tomorrow."

Mike nodded again, "Alright. See you." Mike left the room and Laci climbed under the covers of her bed, quickly falling asleep.

* * *

Don't hurt me! I wrote this MONTHS ago, and I forgot about it completely! But it's here now, so yay?

Umm… Not much to say. The Paranormals are the focus of the second book of this series, and E-Tech is one of them. That's about it.

Ummm… Review?


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